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Sheriff: 7 of 15 businesses sold alcohol to minors
By Greg Cima
gcima@pantagraph.com
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BLOOMINGTON — About half of the businesses checked sold liquor to teens in the sheriff’s office’s first alcohol sales sting since 1999, the sheriff said.

An 18-year-old woman and a 19-year-old man were able to buy alcohol at seven of the 15 locations visited in the sting, said Sheriff Mike Emery. Two of those seven asked for identification and sold the alcohol anyway, he said.

“One looked 18, one looked 19, if not younger,” Emery said. “And they used their personal driver’s licenses as identification.”

And the sheriff said there is no excuse for a business that checks a teenager’s identification and sees the clearly visible marks indicating the person is underage.

“It sticks out and bites you when you look at the ID, so there’s no excuse for that,” Emery said.

The sheriff said the businesses in the area were overdue for such compliance checks, and his department will perform more in the future.

The sheriff’s office filed the complaints with the liquor commissions for the county and the communities of Towanda, Bloomington and LeRoy, according to information provided by the sheriff.

Matt Sorensen, who is chairman of both the McLean County Board and the county liquor control commission, said it’s not realistic to think authorities can stop all underage drinking in the county. But if they can make it more difficult by controlling the point of sale, that is their responsibility.

“If it keeps one more underage person from drinking and driving in McLean County, it’s a wonderful thing,” Sorensen said.

Sorensen said those businesses that didn’t sell to the underage buyers should be applauded. And those that failed probably should have to come in and talk to their liquor control commissions about how they plan to improve.

The punishments by the county’s commission can vary, Sorensen said, starting with a small fine and “slap on the wrist” to suspension of a liquor license and substantial fines. The list of businesses under the authority of the county liquor control commission will be forwarded to the civil division of the state’s attorney’s office, where a history of the businesses’ infractions and recommended punishments will be compiled, he said.

Businesses whose employees are accused of selling to minors are: Green Gables and Lake Road Inn at Lake Bloomington; Mustang Sally’s Bar & Bowl on U.S. 150, near LeRoy; Kicks Bar & Grill and FS Fast Stop, both in Towanda; LeRoy BP; and Buddy’s Liquors, 2303 E. Washington St., Bloomington.

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Reader comments on this story - 25 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

LEO wrote on Sep 3, 2007 3:17 PM:

" Ill second the Dave Owens Starcom Radio doesnt work. It is politically incorrect to speak out against it due to the millions wasted on EF Johnson and the more Millions dumped into Starcom. New isnt always better. They dont get that here. "

Geez.. wrote on Sep 2, 2007 1:40 AM:

" You folks are really out of touch. It's only been a few years since I was in high school and trust me... anybody can get alcohol. Most underage drinking isn't from 18-year-olds going into liquor stores and buying it themselves, they get it from folks that are already 21. Also, to the person who claimed this is keeping the roads safer... get real. These stupid alcohol laws only force teens to try and keep their behavior a secret (such as driving home drunk to make curfew). Imagine if we could all just openly admit that most high school aged kids drink alcohol and instead focus our efforts on teaching them to do it responsibly. And parents... if you think your high-schooler doesn't drink... you're probably wrong. "

to: entrapment wrote on Sep 2, 2007 12:20 AM:

" if these are "classic cases of entrapment", then why have there been so many convictions over the years for the exact same sting operations conducted by several different police agencies? If a judge and the court system has found guilty convictions with no appeals to a higher court entered, then how can it be entrapment? These stings have been conducted for a long time and they work. Ownes was just to lazy and busy golfing or practicing the good ole boy system to do any real police work. Emery is finally shaping up the sheriff's department. "

over aged resident wrote on Sep 1, 2007 8:01 PM:

" I don't get it ! I'm 40 years old and get carded for cigs. But an 18 year old can buy alcohol with their own I.D. Sure glad I don't have teenagers yet. "

Slap? wrote on Sep 1, 2007 7:00 PM:

" If we really want to stop underage purchase of alcohol why is a slap on the wrist to the establishment even an option, hit em hard with fines and I bet they wont sell next time. And if they do maybe they can go without a license. To all of you that call this entrapment. If anything it is ignorance and not being able to read or add or subtract to tell if one is of age. "

To: William Robert wrote on Sep 1, 2007 5:15 PM:

" The kids should definitely be fined, but if the establishment is selling to kids, they need to be stopped. It’s not either/or; both are wrong and the bar owner, as the mature adult and enabler, deserves the harsher punishment. "

to billy bob wrote on Sep 1, 2007 4:46 PM:

" go out to the bars on any weekend and you will find normal or bpd officers walking through and carding those who do look underage. every weekend. "

BILLY BOB wrote on Sep 1, 2007 4:11 PM:

" Instead of sending underage children into bars to solicit drinks from bartenders that could just make an honest mistake why doesn't Emery send police into the bars to randomly card anyone that looks under 21? Thats the way to stop the underage drinking in the bars with out looking like entrapment. If police frequent the bars and do random checks on ID's two things will happen. Underage drinking will cease from the exposure and adults will be more aware of how much they drink due to exposure to law inforcement. This will cause less drunk driving on our streets and highways. Win Win WIn After all the goal is not to find fault with the bar owners and employees but to stop illegal drinking and drunk driving. "

reader wrote on Sep 1, 2007 3:40 PM:

" Oh no this is terrible . "

owens wrote on Sep 1, 2007 3:26 PM:

" if you want to talk about the wonderful accomplishments of dave owens jsut look at the new starcom radio system he introduced to mclean county and you will see why everything he did while in ofice was probably influenced by reach around liberals trying to make an extra buck. radio system that doesnt work, not enforcing underage liquor sales...etc. "

to Entrapment wrote on Sep 1, 2007 1:52 PM:

" So you're saying Owens knew teens were going to get alcohol anyway, so why bother trying to prevent them from getting it? I think it's a good thing Owens is out of office if that was the prevalent attitude while he was sheriff! "

Not entrapment wrote on Sep 1, 2007 1:43 PM:

" Pay attention to how far that defense got [former] Senator Craig. The establishments were not lured into selling alcohol to minors. They either sold without looking at ID, or they looked at the ID, saw it was someone under 21, and sold the alcohol anyway. Hopefully those 7 businesses learned a lesson, but I doubt it. I love how the defense of "entrapment" is always dragged out when someone is caught in a bad situation. "Oh no, Your Honor, I would NEVER do such a thing if the officers hadn't set a trap!" *rolling my eyes* "

Dont Understand wrote on Sep 1, 2007 1:37 PM:

" I don't get it. I posted a comment talking about how strick the owner of an establishment was and it doesn't get posted. However, three people can post statements about being drug dealers and or just plain being ignorant and they go right up. Makes perfect sense to me. Of course this probably won't make it to the boards either. "

buckwheat wrote on Sep 1, 2007 1:14 PM:

" leroy uuus bin kicked out da club house 4 giben out hour trade secrets! "

Former Dealer wrote on Sep 1, 2007 12:26 PM:

" Rules are made to be broken, but when the rules themselves are broken, you don't stand a chance at enforcement. Drinking is bad for you, plus it supports the man. Buy something else from my buddies on the black market. We don't care about your age, just your money. "

More stings wrote on Sep 1, 2007 11:22 AM:

" More stings are in order. Stiffer penalties. Suspend license to sell on first strike for awhile. Repeat offenders get shut down. That's what I would do if I was an authority here. "

Well Done ! wrote on Sep 1, 2007 8:52 AM:

" Good job Sheriff Emery ! Kudos to the Pantagraph for actually naming the offending establishments ! Enforcing the law IS protecting our teens, and everyone else who drives the roadways. "

Man wrote on Sep 1, 2007 8:29 AM:

" it has been going so well. I have this one place that I go to all the time. I just look in an make sure it is the same person working and they must think I 21 since I've been in there so many time. this is going to mess all that up. "

comment wrote on Sep 1, 2007 8:19 AM:

" It is really disappointing when you are trying to keep your kids on the right track and others are aiding them on the wrong track. I say close the business for a while so they won't do it anymore. I don't care if it is Kroger's, Schnucks or some liquor store. At the very least fire the worker who sold it immediately. We have to send a message that this activity is wrong. These people do not seem to realize the chaos that can occur in these kid's lives and they are giving them stepping stones to that chaos "

The reality wrote on Sep 1, 2007 7:21 AM:

" Wouldn't it be refreshing if the police, instead of stings, actually arrested underage kids for drinking and smoking? All they'd have to do is stand on the corner across the street from any school to see the cloud of smoke erupt as soon as school was out. I agree, businesses should not sell to minors; but the vast amount of minors get the alcohol from people of legal age who buy it for them... "

Shocker! wrote on Sep 1, 2007 6:48 AM:

" A bunch of hick bars, etc. I'm shocked. Do those establishments even know there's a legal drinking age now? "

Give us the full story! wrote on Sep 1, 2007 6:24 AM:

" And what were the eight places that DIDN'T sell the liquor during the sting? Although I agree that some punishment is in order, why concentrate media coverage just on the seven that did? Clearly this story focuses just on the negative side, as the Pantagraph seems to do recently. Does a more negative story really sell more newspapers? "

Entrapment wrote on Sep 1, 2007 5:36 AM:

" these stings are classic cases of entrapment. You have the police putting minors up to breaking the law by attempting to purchase alcohol. Not to mention that the minor is in possession of the alcohol when an establishments sells it to them. This is a waste of money and police resources. Get a clue if a minor wants to get alcohol they are going to get it. Either a family member will supply it, a person of questionable character will buy it for them, or the teens will just steal it if they want it bad enough. Sheriff Owens knew this and that is why he did not conduct these sting operations. Now 6 Gun Emery is out to clean up the county, well it is a waste of the few patrolmen he has not to mention encouraging a few youngsters to break the law by attempting to buy the stuff. The fines levied against establishments hardly are worth the money spent for the so called stings. Come on 6 Gun we know you're the sheriff. "

leroy wrote on Sep 1, 2007 1:58 AM:

" come on down to market st we dont care bout no ids and the police are scared of us "

Duh? wrote on Sep 1, 2007 12:47 AM:

" Duh? "
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